Good reminder, thanks Richard. Thanks to Epictetus too. I do tend to love the
Stoics. They often have lovely, dry senses of humor (-:
It's also fun to realize that what he's calling "popular entertainment" is
probably what's now studied in school as the classics!
Yeah, there are the obvious subtexts and memes. But I'm more concerned about
the super subtle ones. For example, I stopped watching Seinfeld because I
thought it was, at heart, a bit too nihilistic for me.
Of course it may be true that nothing matters. Or it may be true that
everything matters. Or that what matters is always changing.
LOL, I guess I'm in a philosophical mood this morning. Hope you and Rita have a
good day.
From: "'Richard J. Williams' pundits...@gmail.com [FairfieldLife]"
<FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com>
To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, December 6, 2014 9:48 PM
Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] Another Don't Panic! day review: "The Newsroom"
On 12/6/2014 8:21 PM, Share Long wrote:
>
Richard, I have a TV set but no cable. I have a public library 2 blocks
away with a great collection of movies and TV series to borrow for free. That's
how I discovered West Wing. But I like it so much I got my own set, the whole 7
season series. I read somewhere that the Josh Lymon character was based on Rahm
Emmanuel who was Obama's first Chief of Staff and is now Mayor of Chicago. My
favorite episode is one called The Supremes, about putting new judges on the
Supreme Court. Great stuff! Also learned a lot about how our govt works.
>
Nice, just be careful what you watch - it can be addicting. Currently we are
watching all the episodes of The Big Bang Theory. LoL!
"Stay away from most popular entertainment. Most of what passes for legitimate
entertainment is inferior or foolish and only caters to or exploits people's
weaknesses. Avoid being one of the mob who indulges in such pastimes. Your life
is too short and you have important things to do. Be discriminating about what
images and ideas you permit into your mind. If you yourself don't choose what
thoughts and images you expose yourself to, someone else will, and their
motives may not be the highest. It is the easiest thing in the world to slide
imperceptibly into vulgarity. But there's no need for that to happen if you
determine not to waste your time and attention on mindless pap." - Epictetus
>
From: "'Richard J. Williams' pundits...@gmail.com [FairfieldLife]"
<FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com>
To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, December 6, 2014 8:06 PM
Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] Another Don't Panic! day review: "The Newsroom"
On 12/6/2014 6:27 AM, Share Long wrote:
>
thanks, turq, I've been a fan of Sorkin since West Wing and am just about
to run out of Castle reruns so am looking for some good TV.
>
You got a TV set and cable? Go figure.
>
From: "TurquoiseBee turquoi...@yahoo.com [FairfieldLife]"
<FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com>
To: FairfieldLife <fairfieldlife@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, December 6, 2014 6:22 AM
Subject: [FairfieldLife] Another Don't Panic! day review: "The Newsroom"
I've taken some shit here in the past for liking this show. I warn you
in advance you that this has not diminished my affection for it, so I'm here
to rave about it again.
*Other than* considering criticism of this show the petty sniping of less
talented writers than Aaron Sorkin (uh...pretty much everybody), I've never
really understood why people dump on it as much as they do. At least
liberals. We all know why conservatives and neo-crypto-fascists dump on it.
I am a real fan of what Sorkin has done in the three and a half seasons this
show has been on the air. I think the writing has been just fuckin' SUPERB,
and that the direction and performances by actors have been of the same
caliber. The American airwaves haven't seen this much fast, snappy dialogue
since "Moonlighting," and before that in the cinema, since the classic
Tracy-Hepburn films.
As an unapologetic fan, I just wanted to post a short, drive-by thumbs up
for this series, in case anyone feels inspired to check it out.
Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, and Sam Waterston just ROCK as the principal
leads, and there is simply no finer cast of supporting players on television
anywhere on the planet. I don't think there is a weak or uninteresting actor
in their midst, and there is at least one veritable superstar. I tune in
every week just on the off chance that the character portrayed by Jane Fonda
will appear. Whenever she does, it's almost automatically an Emmy moment.
The writing is equally "hang ten" for me, both in terms of politics and
writing excellence. "The Newsroom" is a veritable tour de force. If you
hadn't noticed, Aaron Sorkin has been the principal writer of every single
episode, in addition to his duties as showrunner. The latest episodes echo the
very real pseudo-reality that journalists work within in these post-Snowdon
days. I think he's doing incredible work, both as a writer and as a social
activist. Your mileage may vary. This was the opening scene to the series.
Many think it's gone downhill since then. I'm not one of them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zqOYBabXmA
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